South Cornwall · TR11
One studio for new build in Mawnan
A bespoke new build is the longest project we do, and the most rewarding. From plot appraisal through planning, building regulations and construction, you work with one team from the first sketch to the handover walk-round. Working in Mawnan means starting from the TR11 context — Mawnan is a rural parish in the TR11 area, with farmsteads, lanes and scattered homes defining its built character, with a building stock that leans toward converted barns and smallholdings.
Mawnan sits in South Cornwall — covering TR11 from Mawnan Smith, Durgan, Truro outward.
- Cornwall AONB
- Rural / open-countryside policy area
- ✓ Fixed-fee planning packages, no surprise invoices
- ✓ Measured-survey accuracy from day one
- ✓ Cornwall Council regulars across every sub-area
- ✓ Same team on paper as on site
Our process
How a Mawnan new build project runs.
Step 1
Plot review
Site visit, planning history check, designation review and an honest feasibility verdict.
Step 2
Concept design
Sketches that test the plot in massing, orientation and approach before any drawings are committed.
Step 3
Planning
Pre-app, full planning, consultee management and condition discharge.
Step 4
Technical design and build prep
Building regs, structural design, services strategy and contractor procurement.
Step 5
Construction and handover
Build delivered under contract administration with regular client reviews.
Most bespoke new builds run eighteen to thirty months from instruction to keys, depending on site, planning route and build complexity.
Local proof — Recent new build enquiries from Mawnan have clustered around converted barns — we know the route through Cornwall Council on these.
Get a free feasibility viewWhat we focus on
New Builds considerations specific to Mawnan.
01
AONB and Heritage Coast designations apply to large stretches of the county; isolated new builds outside settlement boundaries face a much higher policy bar.
02
Off-grid services — package treatment plants, borehole supply, off-mains gas — are common on rural Cornish plots and need designing, not assuming.
03
Replacement dwellings have specific volumetric tests — getting the ratio between existing footprint and proposed floor area right is the difference between approval and refusal.
04
Self-build CIL exemption requires the right documentation in the right order; missing a step costs five-figure sums.
Local context
Why Mawnan is its own job.
Two things shape a Mawnan application: parish character and policy. On policy — open-countryside policy, access lanes, drainage and agricultural building history all need to be addressed before drawings go too far. For new build specifically, the surrounding landscape falls inside the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, so massing, height and landscape impact carry extra weight in any planning decision; Cornwall Council's Local Plan applies tighter tests to isolated rural dwellings here, so design rationale and policy fit need to be set out clearly from the outset. Get that local reading right and the rest of the Mawnan programme tends to run on time. On converted barns in particular — the kind you'll also find toward St Austell — the new build brief always has to read the existing fabric first.
Planning note
Cornwall's planning policy on new dwellings is among the most restrictive in England outside Greater London. The first conversation should be a planning conversation, not a design one.
Local watch-list
Mawnan-specific issues we screen on the first visit.
Watch #1
AONB landscape-impact scrutiny on visible elevations
Watch #2
Tighter Local Plan tests on isolated rural dwellings
Mawnan is part of Mawnan Smith
Mawnan sits inside the Mawnan Smith catchment — we cover both as one new build territory.
See New Builds in Mawnan Smith →Local fabric
What sets a Mawnan new build brief apart.
Building stock
Across Mawnan (TR11) we work on farmhouses, converted barns, rural cottages, smallholdings, scattered modern homes. Each stock type drives a different new build response — converted barns in particular needs careful detailing here.
Parish & policy
Mawnan sits in the parish of Mawnan, which matters for how parish-level consultation lands on a new build application.
Coverage
We cover TR11 from our studio, with regular new build jobs also running in Mawnan Smith, Durgan, Truro. Most Mawnan site visits get booked within the same week.
Can you handle both planning and build in Mawnan?
Yes — design, planning, building regs and full construction run under one roof. For clients with an existing Mawnan builder we can stop at a tender-ready Full Plans pack instead.
Request a free visitWho this is for
Mawnan runs the full mix — owner-occupier, holiday-let, commercial and the occasional smallholding — so we scope every new build enquiry from the use-class up.
FAQs
Mawnan New Builds — local questions answered.
- What about utilities, drainage and access?
- All designed and applied for as part of the package — water, electric, off-mains drainage where mains isn't viable, and highways access agreement with Cornwall Council where required. In Mawnan specifically, we'd start by checking AONB landscape sensitivity before committing to a direction.
- What's a replacement dwelling and is mine eligible?
- If a habitable dwelling exists on the plot, you can often replace it — within volumetric and design constraints set by Cornwall's Local Plan. Derelict structures sometimes qualify, sometimes don't, depending on lawful use history.
- How long does the whole project take?
- Allow six to twelve months for design and approvals, then ten to fourteen months on site for a typical four-bedroom new build. Complex sites or long planning routes extend that.
- Can you handle a self-build for me?
- Yes — from feasibility to handover. Many of our clients start as 'self-builders' on paper, then hand the actual build to us once they realise how much project management it takes.
- How much does a new build cost?
- Realistic budgets in Cornwall start around £2,800 per square metre for a good-quality build and rise quickly with bespoke joinery, large glazing, complex sites and high-spec finishes. We work to your number, not against it.
Other services in Mawnan
Nearby places we cover
If you're balancing ambition against TR11 planning realism, our Mawnan new build work threads that needle without the usual drama.